Ksenia Schnaider: from Mother Russia with fashion

The unisex brand Ksenia Schnaider presented the new autumn/winter 2013 collection Bodywarmer; the brand drew inspiration from the same iconic garment that was so popular in the Soviet Union due to its affordability.

The Ukrainian fashion designer Ksenia Marchenko and the Russian graphic designer Anton SchnaiderFashion, the duo behind the brand, revisited the austerity and the practicality of the original piece of clothing and softened it using different kinds of fabric and tailoring. The collection still carries the usual minimalist touch that set the brand apart, but it is embellished and modernised with luxury touches, the use of velvet, silk and leather. Dark colours like black and navy are predominant in the collection but lighter hues, such as gold matched with blue, are not excluded. Fanned skirts and quilted dresses are a recurring style; other elements are white shirts and wool trousers, carried through the collection, and reminiscent of the brand’s tradition so far.

For the Bodywarmer collection, men wear voluminous quilted jackets while women wear pleated dresses, versatile pieces of clothing suitable for casual daytime and classy evening events. The brand, funded in 2011, made a name as quickly as it got into the industry, always raising people’s expectations towards their new works and collections.

The couple took inspiration from past elements of the Russian culture in other occasions: their spring/summer 2012 collection Hermit, presented during the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Kiev, was based on hermit’s clothing. Ksenia Schnaider plays with tradition to build a new and more modern concept of fashion.

Back then they showed their consistent tendency in favouring a classic and minimalist style with modern and unexpected twists. The designers did the same thing with their latest spring/summer 2013 collection Camouflage. The brand took the concept of disguising military prints and by using blue and nude palettes, revolutionised the concept to draw attention on the clothes.

After gaining recognition for Camouflage from the likes of Vogue Ukraine and Vogue Russia, expectations for Ksenia Schnaider’s future work keeps steadily growing.

Monica Guerrasio

For further information on Bodywarmer click here.